(Reuters) - West Ham United are under no impression that they are safe in the Premier League but a victory against Stoke City will greatly improve their chances of staying in the top flight, defender Arthur Masuaku said.
West Ham are on 34 points and a win at the London Stadium on Monday will put them within touching distance of the 40-point figure normally associated with survival.
"We don't feel safe yet but if we beat Stoke City, we can make a great step, because it'll be nine points (above the relegation zone)," Masuaku told West Ham's website http://www.whufc.com/news/articles/2018/april/14-april/masuaku-stoke-match-big-opportunity-take-giant-step-towards.
Stoke have lost their last four league matches to sit second from bottom with 27 points and Masuaku believes his team can take advantage of their rivals' struggle for consistency.
West Ham come into the clash high on confidence after a 3-0 victory over Southampton and a 1-1 draw at defending champions Chelsea in their previous two league games.
"It's a big opportunity because they (Stoke) are behind us and we can put 10 points between them and us," Masuaku added.
"If we take the game as we played against Southampton or Chelsea, I think we'll win.
"We just have to play like we have played, to be strong and compact. We don't need to put any extra pressure on ourselves."
(Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in Bengaluru; editing by Amlan Chakraborty)
